Nov 8 Enlivening the Entryway: One Room Challenge Reveal!

Before we get into the pictures of the final space, I must say that this has been the most “ME” One Room Challenge that I’ve ever participated in- Making major impact with simple changes, ignoring deadlines, and then pulling it off in the end-lol! I’ve missed 3 of 6 posts because of much needed family time, sickness that left me unable to get out of bed for a week, so I didn’t, and a mis-measurement of wallpaper, which left one of the walls only half done. I’ve also completely failed to finish the fireplace and therefore the mantel is simply leaning against it. BUT!!!!!…I the did stay true to my word when I said that I would be thrifty as hell! I thrifted all the accessories, baskets, mirror and planters; I re-used the runner and umbrella stand; I used a credit to obtain the blue entry rug; and we were gifted the most perfect marble topped hall table from my mother-in-law (turns out this was my husband’s great grandmothers). The only real money spent was on the wallpaper and paint. Many late nights were spent prepping and painting those floors, baseboards and trim, as well as hanging the wallpaper, but it was all worth it!

A quick reminder of where we started:

Not bad, I know, but lacking the feeling that it was OUR home. Now what you’ve all been waiting for… the new and improved entry:

The $4 vase from the goodwill is one of my favorite finds, the white dogs are something that I picked up over a year ago from Hobby Lobby (who would have guessed!) and the metal bowl, which now serves as our mail catcher, is from Chairish.

From the entry you can see our living room- another space that got a small refresh with a new furniture arrangement, drapery, painted fireplace (I applied the same paint that I used on all the trim), thrifted $20 mirror and “new” mantel from Facebook Marketplace! I plan to finish this space before the holidays and will tackle the fireplace tiling and mantel install next week.

If you watched my Instagram stories, you will have seen that the trickiest part to this entire makeover was finding the right console table. In the end, my mother in law came through- She had this family piece in storage and brought it to CT so that it could live another life with us. Thanks Liz!!

I wanted a way to soften all the black and white so I added these wall planters from a local antique mall and gorgeous art by Katy Garry Fine Art.

This next photo displays what may be my favorite view since it beautifully showcases those white hardwoods! All of the newly black door frames and our bright runner are a stunning contrast to the floors. And after seeing the space come together, we decided to keep the front door yellow for just a while longer : )

Did we finish every project on our list? Nope. Is our home more beautiful and more full of personality than before? Yes! One lesson that I consistently take away from these One Room Challenges is that your home doesn’t have to be perfect all at once, but when you put your heart into a space, it will shine!

Go check out all the other diamonds in the rough by clicking HERE and HERE. And give those designers and bloggers some love in their comments- everyone who has taken part in this makeover challenge has given it their all.